Powerless
by ermireallydontcare
Summary: What happens when the girl you view as a sister/daughter kills herself? When your son/brother plans to follow? When your wife is risking her life to stop him? This is the Cullens' new moon, as they wait for news of their loved ones on the brink of death.
1. Alice

**This is going to be a look into the minds of the rest of the Cullen family when they found out about Bella's supposed death and Edward's suicide attempt. Each chapter will be a different POV, except the last, which will be a short paragraph or two from everyone.**

**Just so we're clear I don't own Twilight.**

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**Alice**

I replayed the vision over and over again in my head. Bella was stood at the top of a cliff. She had a strange smile on her face; it was almost like she was happy about what she was about to do. She stood there for a moment, and then she jumped. I watched her struggle with the tide for a short while, drowning, and then … nothing.

I tried again and again to see her future, but every time I was greeted with the same nothingness. _It couldn't be right, I had to be seeing things wrong. She couldn't be … NO, she just couldn't be_. For the first time ever, I hoped something was wrong with my visions.

I give up trying to see her, and shifted my attention to her father. I saw him sat in a hospital waiting room, the look on his face told me all I needed to know. He was clearly grieving. I could think of only one explanation for why. I had to accept facts, as much as I didn't want to. There could be no more denial. She was dead. Charlie's daughter was dead. My sister was dead.

_My sister._ Except she hadn't been, not when she died. Or at least that's what she'd thought. But she was supposed to have been; it was what I had seen. The happily-ever-after my brother deserved after a century of loneliness. But, being the stubborn melodramatic masochist that he is, he hadn't been able to accept that.

I knew I couldn't get there in time to stop her, but I still felt like I had to go down there and do something, anything. I began to get my things together at vampire speed. I remembered the look on Charlie's face. Maybe I could at least help him, it was the least I could do after everything he'd been through.

Despite Edward's order not to look into Bella's future, I had still gotten flashes of her now and then. I couldn't help it; I had become attuned to her after all the months last year where I had watched over her future for her protection, on Edward's request. Some of those visions flashed through my mind. Bella catatonic at her Biology table in school, her eyes not fully there, she was clearly watching but not really seeing. Bella with her hands wrapped tight around her waist, looking like she was trying to keep herself from falling to pieces. But worst of all, Bella screaming in the night, Charlie rushing out of his room to her, only to realise there was nothing he could do. The flashes had got less and less over the last few months, but what I'd seen had been more optimistic. From the rare glimpses I got of her and her Dad, or her at school, she seemed, not happy, but at least not catatonic anymore. Apparently my optimism had been wrongly placed.

I ran downstairs to the living room of the Denali clan's house. Jasper, Rosalie, Emmett, Kate, Irina and Tanya were all there. Carlisle, Esme, Carmen and Elezear were out hunting.

Jasper took one look at me and knew something was wrong.

"Alice, what's wrong, what's happened?" He grabbed hold of both my hands, holding me in front of him so he could look me in the eyes. I stared back at his eyes, his love and concern for me was clearly reflected there.

"Bella," I managed to get out. I heard Rosalie sigh dramatically in the background. I had had it with her and her attitude toward Bella. She had been nothing but rude to, and about Bella, from the start, when Bella had never done anything to her, except exist. But that didn't matter to Rosalie she wanted Bella gone. _Well she's got her wish._

"She's dead," I told them. "She jumped off a cliff." I looked around at them all for their reaction. My husband and siblings looked shocked, while the other three just looked confused.

"I'm going to Forks," I announced.

"Alice, you know Edward asked," Jasper began, but I cut him off.

"Well I'm done doing what Edward asks. He asked us all to leave, even though I told him it would do no good. I told him again and again he was fighting the inevitable, but he still went ahead with his ridiculous plan. He's not better off without her, and clearly she was coping no better than him!" I ranted. I couldn't help it. I love Edward, I really do, but everything that happened in the last eight months was so avoidable. His pain. Bella's pain. Bella's death. I had to keep reminding myself of that. She wasn't suffering anymore - she was dead. And though I'd never say it, or think it, to his face, my brother was the one responsible. Everything my family had suffered through was his fault, because he was too stubborn to face the fact that he and Bella were meant to be. But it was too late for that now.

"I'm off to Forks," I repeated. "I'm too late to help Bella, but at the very least I can help Charlie." His face, both in the hospital and by her bedside, flashed into my mind.

"OK," Jasper said. I let go of his hands and went to leave the room. Stopping at the doorway I said,

"Whatever you do, don't tell Edward yet." I couldn't 'see' how Edward would react to the news yet, but I could guess. It wasn't going to be pretty; we would have to pick our moment and our words just right.

I flitted toward the garage. We had come here in Carlisle's Mercedes and Rosalie's red convertible. I decided the Mercedes would be more conspicuous. Luckily I had a key.

I felt a hand suddenly circle my waist.

"You didn't think I was going to let you leave without saying goodbye did you," I heard Jasper drawl from behind me. He spun me round to face him and kissed me deeply. "Goodbye, be careful," he whispered in my ear as he withdrew from our kiss. I had to resist the urge to roll my eyes, as sweet as it was, 'be careful' was a wasted sentiment. I was going to Forks, for God's sake.

"I'll see you soon, I promise," I whispered back, giving him a quick kiss, before opening the Mercedes and getting in.

Soon I was driving through the Alaskan wilderness, at a speed most humans would find terrifying, but I was fine with. The same flashes of my visions that had been flickering through my head all day continued, like a film stuck on continuous.

Catatonic Bella, screaming Bella, Charlie's look off hopelessness, Charlie's grieving face, Bella jumping. My mind lingered on the look on her face when she had jumped. That smiled that suggested she was happy with where life had taken her, even though that somewhere was the top of a cliff to kill herself.

_What had he done to her? What had __**we**__ done to her?_ Edward was right in a way, if we had never been a part of her life, she would still be alive. But we couldn't change that now. She was dead and the blame lay at our door. We had brought her into our dangerous world and then we had left her behind. We could of said 'no'. We could have told Edward where to shove it. But we didn't. And now she was dead, and there was nothing I could do to bring her back.

I picked up speed in a desperation to get there quicker, to be able to do what I could to help. Just to do something.

But even driving fast wasn't a distraction. Bella's happy twisted smile still stuck in my mind, haunting me.

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**Reviews are greatly appreciated, thank you. What did you think of Alice's reaction?**


	2. Esme

**So one thing that's always intrigued me, but is usually not considered, is how Esme reacted to the news that Bella jumped off a cliff. I mean that had to have had some effect on her, right? **

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**Esme**

It had been a good day. I felt happier than I had felt in a long time. Happier than I'd been since we'd left Forks. I'd been out hunting with Carlisle, Carmen and Elezear. I had had fun with my husband and our close friends, we had laughed and joked like old times. It felt good to be able to be happy again, after all of the trauma my family had been through. Admittedly, we were still going through it. Every minute while Edward stayed away from us, and Bella, we were still going through it. But it had been good to forget all our worries, if only for several hours.

We were in sight of the Denali clan's home, when I felt a gentle tugging on my hand. Allowing the other two to go ahead of us, I turned my attention on my husband.

"You're happy," he stated. It wasn't a question. He smiled at me and I smiled back at him.

"Is it such a bad thing to be able to be happy, if only for a small amount of time?" I asked. I knew it couldn't last. Happiness was fleeting nowadays, when I carried the knowledge of my oldest son's heartbreak around with me. Always there to remind me he was out there somewhere, suffering.

The last time we had spoken was just before Christmas, I had asked him to come home for the holidays and he had refused. He was out there, alone and hurt, and he was refusing the help I so desperately wanted to give to him. I longed to comfort him as only a mother could, but I hadn't seen him since we had left Forks, as he had refused to follow us to Ithaca.

"No, no it's not," Carlisle replied, he pulled me toward him and kissed me deeply. I didn't get much chance to enjoy the kiss though, as we were interrupted by the sound of shouting from within the house.

"We should just phone him and end this!" I recognised Rosalie's piercing voice.

"Alice said not to." That was Jasper.

"So? We don't all have to follow your wife's orders," Rosalie replied sarcastically.

"Don't you dare talk about my wife like that!" I heard Jasper growl.

"Get the hell away from my wife!" Emmett growled back.

I looked questioningly at Carlisle, and saw the same confusion I felt reflected on his face. Without saying a word we both headed at full speed toward the house.

All three of our children stopped arguing when we entered the room. Tanya, Kate and Irina stood in the middle of them, with Jasper on one side, and Rosalie and Emmett on the other. Carmen and Elezear stood at the edge of the group, watching on looking confused.

"What's going on?" Carlisle asked. All three of our children looked at him uncomfortably.

"Where's Alice?" I asked, when no one seemed willing to explain.

"Forks," Jasper answered.

"Forks?" both Carlisle and I asked surprised.

"Why would she go to Forks? She knows … we have to stay away," I said. I couldn't bring myself to say my son's name.

"That doesn't matter much anymore," Emmett muttered.

"What do you mean?" Carlisle asked. All three looked uncomfortably at us again.

"Bella's dead," Rosalie announced flatly.

_Bella's dead? How could we ever tell Edward that? If simply leaving her behind had left him near cationic with grief, what was the news of her death going to do to him?_

Even among my worry for my son, I felt a moment of grief for the girl I had already begun to see as a daughter. Brave, darling Bella. The girl who had brought my son out of his shell after centuries of loneliness, who had brought about changes within him that I could never have imagined. It had been wonderful to see my son so alive. Even after knowing him from decades, I realised I had never really seen him fully happy. And back then, if only for a few short months, he had been, thanks to her – the girl brave enough to walk into a house full of vampires.

I remembered the first time I'd met her. The way Edward had stood beside her, loving and protective, it was a side of him I'd never seen before. I remembered the words I'd overheard him say to her, 'Esme wouldn't care if you had a third eye and webbed feet.' It was true. He was happy and that was all I cared about.

And now all his happiness is gone, and that brave, beautiful, intelligent young girl is too.

"Dead? What happened?" Carlisle asked unbelievingly.

"She …" Rosalie trailed off. I couldn't help but notice that her eyes had flickered toward me, before quickly turning their attention back to Carlisle.

"Rose, whatever it is, just tell us, please," I asked.

_What had killed her? An accident? Considering her clumsiness that was a possibility. _Different scenarios flashed through my head. Bella following down the stairs, much like the cover story we'd used after the Phoenix incident, hitting her head, and the resulting injury killing her. Bella in her ancient truck, involved in some traffic accident. _Or had she been on the other side of the accident, an innocent pedestrian? _But none of these theories would explain my daughter's reluctance to tell me what had happened.

"She killed herself," Rosalie answered reluctantly. I couldn't help the gasp that escaped my lips. I felt my husband grasp my hand, but I wasn't paying much attention.

_She'd killed herself. Why would she do that?_

Though it was blurred, I could still remember the loneliness and desperation I had felt at the top of that cliff eighty-five years ago. The feeling of having nothing else to live for, that everything I had held on for was lost, that there was nothing left that mattered another to keep on living.

_Had Bella felt like that, before she died? Is that what we'd done to her? Made her feel the same desolation I had felt after my son's death?_

Horror coursed through me at the idea that I had helped to cause the anguish I had felt that day to anyone. Especially Bella, who had done nothing wrong to anyone but love.

"Are you sure?" Carlisle asked desperately. I could tell he was hoping they'd been a mistake, but I knew it was false hope. In my mind I could see exactly why she would have taken such drastic measure. When Edward left he had taken away what she loved, what she lived for, in exactly the same way that my son leaving me had done. _If she had felt the same as I did, than I could fully believe she would take the same action._

"Alice saw it," Jasper replied.

"What exactly did she see?" There was another long pause. I was certain that for a brief second, all eyes had flickered toward me, much like Rosalie's earlier, before turning back to Carlisle.

Like earlier my imagination went into over-drive. Different images flickered through my mind.

_What exactly had Alice seen?_ _Had Bella found a more peaceful way to kill herself than I had? Or had she faced the same violent end I had once been so willing for?_

I hoped it was the former. That Bella had simply taken to many pills, an overdose, and slipped peacefully from this world. It was the very least she deserved, a quiet end.

But my mind couldn't help but envisage the more violent possibilities, and it conjured images that tortured me. Bella hanging herself. Bella slitting her wrists. I was ashamed of myself when my throat burned as I thought of that possibility, of her wrists red with her potent blood.

"What exactly did she see?" I heard Carlisle ask again, forcing myself to focus on the conversation in the living room, and not the grotesque images running through my mind. I suddenly felt calmer, clearly my son's doing, but I couldn't be angry with him for it, it was a much-needed relief. The feeling of calm increased as Jasper answered Carlisle's question,

"She saw Bella jump off a cliff."

_She jumped off a cliff?_ The current of calm Jasper forced into me was not enough to keep me together.

I was no longer Esme Cullen, stood in the middle of a living room in remote Alaska. I was Esme Platt Evenson, the year was 1921, and I was stood on a cliff top looking down at a lake in Wisconsin. I knew I had come here for a reason, knew that there was no other place my life could go now. I was alone with no hope. There was no chance of happiness in my future. I had lost everything I had cared enough to live for. With that thought I walked off the edge of the cliff, safe in the knowledge that the end was soon for me, and that with it, it would bring a resolution to all the pain, and the loss, and the loneliness.

Then I wasn't in Wisconsin, but in Washington. It was not 1921 anymore, but 2006. And I was no longer Esme Platt Evenson, but Bella Swan, as I stood at the top of a cliff and looked down at the waters below. But the feeling of desperation didn't change. I still felt like I had lost everything. That I had nothing left to live for. I still sought an end to it all in the swishing waters below me.

"Esme?" The panicked voice of my husband brought my mind back to where I really was. I was Esme Cullen, stood frozen in the middle of a living room, while her worried family looked on.

"I'm okay," I lied. I heard the others began talking around me, but I wasn't listening to the conversation.

My mind was still preoccupied by the image of Bella at the top of a cliff, filled with the same agony I had once decided to escape from forever.

_Had she simply walked off the edge like I did, to numb from pain to do anything else? Or had she ran up to it and jumped, happy to be escaping her life? _I would never know. There was no way for me to ever know what had happened, or what she had thought, in those last moments of her life. Had her thoughts been solely for Edward, or had she thought of us as well, if only briefly? The family she had wished to join, who had turned our backs on her.

We had done this to her. We could have stopped Edward. We could have listened to Alice's warnings that it was all for nothing. I could have stepped in as my position as Edward's mother, and told him no, that it would only hurt him and Bella. But it's too late for that now. His love was dead, gone from him forever.

"We need to tell Edward, get him home so he can stop moping around," I heard Rosalie say.

_Tell Edward? How were we ever going to tell him this without making him more broken than he already was? How would he react to the news? I doubt he would come home and stop moping around, like Rosalie had said._

My overactive imagination created yet another image in my mind. This time it was not Bella or I who stood at the top of a cliff, but Edward, my beloved son. But the desolation and despair that had led both Bella and me to a cliff-top were as present in him as they had been in us.

I was about to fly into a hysterical panic, until some still rational part of my brain reminded me that vampires couldn't commit suicide. Carlisle was living proof of that.

Still I realised the truth behind the image my mind had created. If losing Edward had caused Bella to take her own life, than I was certain losing Bella indefinitely would cause Edward to feel the same desire.

_What could we possibly do to help him through a loss so intense?_

"Perhaps it's best we don't tell Edward quite yet, until we can think of the best way of presenting the news," I heard my husband say to Rosalie.

"Why wait? All he's doing is moping around in South America. Why not get him home as soon as possible? Why, don't you want him back?" I felt my husband bristle beside me at Rosalie's callous reply.

"We all want Edward back, Rose," I replied for him. It was true. I wanted my son back more then anything. But he would be coming back a broken shell of the boy he had been. As his mother I would, of course, do everything I could to help him through his tragic loss. The problem was I didn't think there was anything I could do that would be enough to help.

Again the image of Edward at the top of the cliff flooded my mind. If I had simply walked gently off the top, I imagined my always-melodramatic son would have taken an extravagant leap to show his feelings for his lost love.

Relief flooded me as I reminded myself again that vampires can't commit suicide. Much as I hated the thought of the pain my son would suffer, the idea of losing him forever was even more horrifying.

"Esme?" My husband's voice was gentle, but still panicked. I realised I was being gently led out of the living room and up the stairs. I vaguely recognised that we had arrived in the guest room Carlisle and I were sharing.

"You okay, love?" Carlisle asked me gently, pulling me into the embrace of his arms.

"I keep imagining her jumping," I told him, not knowing where to start with the thoughts that plagued me. My grief for the human girl I had been beginning to consider my daughter. My worries for my son and the torment he would carry with him for all eternity. My own past reflected in their loss.

I felt Carlisle's tighten his arms around me. One hand began lovingly stroking my hair as I began to sob into his chest.

But I couldn't stop the onslaught of images in my mind. Me at the top of a cliff. Bella at the top of cliff. Edward at the top of a cliff.

_You're okay now and Edward can't hurt himself_. I told myself this over and over again. But there was no such reprieve for Bella. That sweet little human girl, that had loved my son with all her heart, was gone. She couldn't be rescued like I was. And if I was being honest with myself, I knew that if Bella couldn't be rescued, neither could Edward.

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**Reviews would be greatly appreciated. What did you think of Esme's response to the news of Bella's suicide? **


	3. Rosalie

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**I've never wrote Rosalie's POV before, so I struggled somewhat with this chapter, especially since she's a difficult one, for me anyway, to characterize. Unless you do the simplistic 'vain bitchy one', but I think you have to consider there's more to her than that.**

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**Rosalie**

I dialled Edward's number for the twenty-fifth time; after all, as long as I was persistent, he had to answer eventually. I needed him to pick up before everyone else got back.

The Denali clan had left, supposedly to go into the town, but we could all tell they were just giving our family some space. Jasper and Emmett were hunting. Carlisle had taken Esme away from the house to give her some time away from us all, as she had spent the best part of the night simply trying to keep it together for our sake. Alice was still in Forks. This had left me alone in the house.

It hadn't taken me long to decide what to do. I was going to phone Edward and bring an end to this mess. Esme's grief, Carlisle's self-doubt, and, worst of all for me, Emmett's loss of his ingrained happiness and bounciness, slowly disappearing as he missed his brother more and more.

And loathed though I am to admit it, I missed Edward. I never thought I would, but I do. I guess we truly are brother and sister, we annoy the hell out of each, but, though neither of us would ever admit, we love each other too.

And now our family was falling apart without him. All because of some stupid human girl. If she had only had the commonsense to stay away from us to begin with, none of this would have ever happened. Edward would still have been with us, we'd have been in Forks and she would have been alive. I was surprised that I would even consider her life in all this. I even felt a little grief at her death, just a little, but still some all the same. This pleasantly surprised me, I wasn't the completely heartless bitch that Jasper had tried to paint me as during our arguments over whether we should phone Edward or not. Vain and somewhat superficial, I'll readily admit to. I know my own faults. Perhaps, if it hadn't always been my beauty and not my personality, that I was judged based upon, than I would be different. But I am what am I. And I am many things, but heartless wasn't one of them. I loved my family, and that was why I wanted to tell Edward what had happened. It wasn't a need to gloat, like Jasper had suggested. I wanted him home so we could all began the process of moving on that much quicker.

_So what if Alice had asked me not to, and Carlisle had agreed with her? Did my opinion not matter? Did I not have a voice in this family? Is what I think just something to be ignored by everyone? Even when I'm right, like now?_

For the twenty-fifth time, my call went through to Edward's answer machine. I didn't want to leave a message; even I was more considerate of his feelings than that. Without thinking about it, I hit re-dial. It ring through a few times and than, finally, he answered it.

"What?' he asked tensely. _Talk about rude._

"Oh, wow. Edward answered the phone. I feel so honored." I couldn't help my sarcastic reply. _After it took twenty-six times for him to answer the phone, would I simple 'hello' have killed him?_

I heard the phone hang up. _Fine. I'll just keep trying then. You have to listen to me eventually. _I dialled his number again.

"Get on with it that." Suddenly I didn't know what to say. I had been so busy focusing on why it was the right decision to tell him, that I hadn't considered what to say.

"I thought you would want to know that Alice is in Forks." I couldn't just come out and say 'Bella's dead'. Much as I had never understood my brother's obsession with the human girl, I knew I had to show at least a little tact. Moronic as it was, he did care for her.

"What?" his voice was flat, emotionless. It scared me slightly. _Is that what being without her had done to him?_ I began doubting what I was doing.

"You know how Alice is – thinks she knows everything. Like you." I chuckled slightly, trying to make a joke and hold off the inevitable end of this conversation. There was a long silence. _Was he even listening to me?_

"Are you still there, Edward?" He still didn't reply. _Talk about rude, Edward._

"Edward? Don't you even care why Alice is there?" I goaded him, hoping for a response.

"Not particularly." I couldn't help but feel slightly smug that my goading had finally got a response out of him.

"Well, of course, she's not exactly breaking the rules. I mean, you only warned us to stay away from Bella, right? The rest of Forks doesn't matter." I trilled a nervous laugh. "So you don't need to be angry at Alice." _The last thing this family needs is another argument and more angst. _

"Then why did you call me, Rosalie, if not to get Alice in trouble? Why are you bothering me? Ugh!"

"Wait!" I shouted, sensing he was about to hang up. I knew I needed to tell him everything. It had to be better to give him the full truth now, than to tell him pleasant half-lies. He would find out eventually, after all.

"That's not why I called."

"Then why? Tell me quickly, and then leave me alone." He heavily emphasised the last words. _No, Edward, I won't leave you alone until you stop tearing our family apart over some human._

"Well…" I hesitated. I still hadn't found the right words.

"Spit it out, Rosalie. You have ten seconds."

"I think you should come home," I said in rush, saying exactly what I thought just so long as it stopped him from hanging up. "I'm tired of Esme grieving and Carlisle never laughing. You should feel ashamed at what you've done to them. Emmett misses you all the time and it's getting on my nerves. You have a family. Grow up and think about something besides yourself."

"Interesting advice, Rosalie. Let me tell you a little story about a pot and a kettle…"_How dare he? I wasn't the one who was ripping our family apart, ruining everyone's lives._

"I am thinking about them, unlike you," I snapped at him, indignant at his comment. "Don't you care about hurting Esme, if no one else? She loves you more than the rest of us, and you know that." I knew the idea of Esme's pain would affect him deeply. It was impossible to not care about someone as impossibly loving as our mother. That was part of the reason I had to get him to come home, I couldn't stand watching her hurt. "Come home." Again he didn't answer. _Stop messing around, and just agree to come home, Edward._

"I thought once the whole Forks thing was finished, you would get over it."

"Forks was never the problem, Rosalie. Just because Bella has moved to Florida, it doesn't mean I'm able … Look. Rosalie. I really am sorry, but, trust me, it wouldn't make anyone happier if I were there." _What was he talking about? I never said Bella moved to Florida? _Annoyance filled me as I realised he hadn't picked up what I meant. Now I would have to tell him straight out.

"Um…" I hesitated, still unsure of the words.

"What is it your not telling me, Rosalie? Is Esme all right? Is Carlisle-"

"They're fine. It's just … well, I didn't say that Bella moved." There was more silence on the other end of the phone. He wasn't going to figure this out for himself. I was going to have to say it.

"They didn't want to tell you, but I think that's stupid. The quicker you get over this, the sooner things can go back to normal. Why let you mope around the dark corners of the world when there's no need for it? You can come home now. We can be a family again. It's over." The words were rushed. I was shocked to realise I was offering him an explanation of my decision. Usually, I would never consider having to explain myself to him. _You're doing the right thing. You're doing the right thing. _I thought about all the reasons I had just given him for my actions. _Yes, I was doing the right thing._

Edward still hadn't said anything.

"Edward?"

"I don't understand what you're saying, Rosalie." _This is it. I just have to say it. Then all this is over, and he can finally come home to his family._ Still I paused for a long time, before I said the words that would fully show him how over it truly was.

"She's dead, Edward." There was more silence on the other end of the phone. I waited for him to say something. 'I'm coming home, Rosalie' preferably, but he didn't. Eventually I felt I had to speak again.

"I'm … sorry." _Did I really just apologise to Edward?_ "You have a right to know, though, I think. Bella …" I paused again, but now he knew there was no need to hold back the details from him, he would have found them out from our thoughts as soon as he got home anyway, "threw herself off a cliff two days ago. Alice saw it, but it was too late to do anything. I think she would have helped, though, broken her word, if there had been time. She went back to do what she could for Charlie. You know she's always cared for him-" My words were cut off when he hung up.

It didn't matter though. He would phone back soon, to say he was coming home, I was sure of it. Then our family could go back to normal, just how I liked it. Just as it was before some human, of all people, came along and messed everything up.

Emmett would cheer up immensely when he heard his brother was coming home, and that thought cheered me up immensely. Smiling as I thought of Emmett's joy at hearing the news that his brother was coming home, I knew I had done the right thing.

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**So, that was my attempt at Rosalie's POV. I was trying to show the more protective, loyal side of her, while also showing the self-obsessed, temperamental side she's well known for. Did I succeed? I would love to hear your thoughts on my perspective of Rosalie.**

**The dialogue in this chapter comes from the New Moon Extra 'Rosalie's Phone Call' on Stephenie Meyer's website. **

**Also if you would like to continue reading Rosalie's POV on the events of New Moon, there is the New Moon Extra 'Miscalculation', which I used for inspiration. It shows Rosalie's reaction to Alice's phone call, which is why I didn't also write about that in this chapter. I wasn't even going to try and attempt to write something better than Stephenie herself. **

**I was going to provide links to Stephenie Meyer's website, but it won't let me for some reason, but if you want to read them I'm sure you can find it for yourselves.**


	4. Emmett

**I've never wrote Emmett's POV before either, but I didn't struggle as much as with Rosalie's.****

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**Emmett**

Jasper and me were coming back from our hunting trip. I was a little worried about how Rose would be once we got home. Ever since Alice had announced Bella's death, she had been insistent on phoning Edward. I couldn't blame her. We all wanted the little pain-in-the-arse know-it-all, and I call him that with love, home.

But Alice had said not to and Carlisle agreed, so I wasn't going to argue with them, they always knew what was best. But my Rose is a different story. She fights for what she believes in, it's one of the many reason I love her.

I still can't believe Bella killed herself. She didn't seem like that kind of girl. Despite looking fragile even for a human, she always seemed tough as nails to me. She had knowingly dated a vampire, for crying out loud. _Damn, I was going to miss that little klutz._

"Emmett! Emmett!" I heard Rosalie's voice shouting. She sounded panicked. _Uh-oh, this can't be good. _I ran at full speed to the house.

"Rose, what's wrong?"

"I really fucked things up, Emmett," she whimpered. This wasn't good. Rose never whimpers.

"Rose, Rose, what happened?" She was really worrying me now.

"I phoned Edward." Behind us, Jasper groaned. There was a long pause. _Clearly he's not coming home. _"Alice saw him going to Italy." _Going to Italy?_

"Italy?" Jasper cut in from behind, alarmed. _OK, what am I missing?_

"What's so bad about Italy?" I asked. Both Rosalie and Jasper shot me the look that says 'Emmett's an idiot.' I know that look well, and I despise it. _Emmett McCarty Cullen is no idiot._

"The Volturi," Jasper answered flatly.

"Oh yeah, the psychopathic royals. Why's Edward going to them? That makes no sense." That earned me the look from both of them again. But it didn't make sense. _Why would learning Bella's dead make Edward go running to the psycho royals?_

"He's going to die," Rosalie answered. _Die? Edward can't just die! I won't let him!_

"Melodramatic idiot. Well, what are we waiting for? Let's go!" I looked at them both expectantly. _Why are we just standing around when Edward is trying to get himself killed?_

"I don't think we can stop him, Emmett," Jasper stated.

"Well, we have to try!"

"What if it was Rosalie who was dead?" That stopped me in my tracks. I tried to imagine my life without Rosalie. It was a bleak future. If it were Rosalie who was dead, would I want to keep on living? _No._ And if I'd decided to go to Italy to die, would I want my brothers following me to stop me? _No._

"Bella's not dead." I looked at Rosalie surprised. Surely, I had heard her wrong. Bella was dead. Alice had seen it.

"What are you talking about Rosalie?" Jasper asked.

"Alice phoned, she was wrong. Bella's still alive." _Alice got something wrong?_ If it hadn't got us into such a serious situation, I would have been over-the-moon at the idea of having that to tease Alice about.

"Well, if Bella's alive, then there's no reason to not go and get that little idiot. Come on!" Again I looked at them expectantly.

"We can't just march into Volterra, Emmett, the Volturi would just kill us as well," Jasper stated flatly.

"I'm not sitting around doing nothing! I'm sure we could take these Volturi guys!" Jasper gave me the look again. _God, I really do despise that look._

"I'm coming with you," Rosalie said. "I caused this, I have to help fix it." _That's my girl._

"Let's go then!" Together we headed into the garage and into Rosalie's car. Rose didn't say anything the entire time, which was very odd for her, she usually wasn't shy about sharing her opinions.

In silence, she started the car and started driving toward the nearest airport.

I began to ponder what we would do once we got to Italy and how we would find Edward. I didn't know. I just knew we had to. The idea of the Cullen family without Edward was implausible. I tried to imagine it and came up blank. It just couldn't happen. Therefore we had to find him. Simple as.

_We're coming, Edward. So just hold up on the Romeo crap until we get there to stop you. Because you can't die. I won't allow it._

"What if we can't stop him?" Rosalie finally spoke. Her voice was so wretched that my heard bled for her. It hurt me to see her looking so downtrodden.

"We will, babe," I said confidently, putting my arm around her shoulder and squeezing it affectionately.

_We will. Because we can't fail. I can't lose my brother. We just can't be the Cullen family without him. And if Bella truly is alive, then the two of them can get back together, at last, and finally enjoy it like they deserve. It's the only possible future that I can imagine. So we just can't fail._

* * *

**I'm was trying to get across that Emmett just can't stand the idea of the possibility of a future where Edward's dead and therefore can't envision such a possibility as plausible future for him and his family, so he's confident they won't fail. I hope that came through, and you understood what I meant.**

**Reviews are always greatly appreciated. **


	5. Jasper

**Jasper**

I watched Rosalie and Emmett drive away. A part of me wished I'd gone with them, to help rescue my brother. However, another part knew they were going on a doomed mission. That the two of them have no hope of winning against the Volturi.

_Maybe I should have stopped them, the last thing we need is to lose more family members._

But there would have been no arguing with Emmett, he was determined to go.

_If only Alice was here, we could of asked her._ But Alice is in Forks, with Bella. She would have enough on her hands trying to console Bella.

But I need her. I need to talk to her. To ask her advice. Just to know she's OK. That despite everything that's happening with our family, she's still OK. We're still OK.

Unable to resist the need anymore, I picked my phone up and called her. _I just need to hear her voice._

She picked up on the first ring, as always. _My little psychic._

"Hello." It was the familiar bell-like voice that I love, but, instead of being excited to hear it after nearly two days without her, I was filled with panic at the sound of the worry in it.

"Alice? What's wrong? What's happening in Forks?"

"I'm not in Forks anymore." _What? What was going on? Was she OK? _"I'm on a plane, with Bella. We're going to…" She trailed off, but I knew what she had been going to say. _Italy. She's going to Italy after Edward. Into the heart of the Volturi._

Flashbacks from the last time the Volturi visited the South filled my head. Vampires tortured, ripped apart and killed. Suddenly I saw Alice in their place. _I can't have them anywhere near my Alice. Or, if I must, I was going to be there too. To make sure no harm came to her._

"I'm coming too."

"No, you can't."

"I'm not letting you go into Italy by yourself. And Emmett's insistent on going to."

"Tell Emmett no."

"Him and Rosalie have already set off, I'll catch them up-"

"Well, go after Emmett and Rosalie and bring them back," she cut me off. _She can't honestly think I'm going to let her go alone?_

"I can't let you go alone."

"Think about it, Jasper. If he sees any of us, what do you think he will do?" I realised what she meant.

"He'll hear us coming in our thoughts. And even if we're mentally screaming, 'Bella's alive' at him; he won't believe us, because that's exactly what we would do to stop him, whether she was really alive or dead. He'd just speed everything up to get it done before we got there." I couldn't help but see the truth in her words. If we all went running to Italy, it would be of no help to anyone.

_But why did she have to be the one who went?_

"Exactly. I think Bella is the only chance – if there is a chance." Again, she was right. But I hadn't missed the double meaning in her words.

"If there is a chance?" I echoed back at her questioningly.

"I'll do anything that can be done, but prepare Carlisle; the odds aren't good."

"Aren't good? For Edward? Or for you? You do realise that once you're in Volterra, there's a chance you won't make it out."

"I've thought of that, yes." Her words cut through me like a knife.

_She'd thought of that. She knew there was a chance she'd never make it back to me. But she was still going, choosing to save Edward over returning safely to me._

I knew it was selfish, but I couldn't help but be hurt by her decision. I would miss Edward if he died. But I would miss Alice a lot more.

"You made me a promise, Alice." The last words she'd said to me filled my head, 'I'll see you soon, I promise.'

"I know. And I meant it. I still do."

"You still do?" _She still did? How can she possibly guarantee her survival?_

"Yes, I promise. Don't follow me." She paused for a moment. "I promise, Jasper. One way or another, I'll get out … and I love you."

"I love you too." The line went dead as she hung up the phone.

_She can't know for sure she'll make it out alive. _She had lied to me, I knew. Had lied so I wouldn't follow her. And so I wouldn't. But the lie still cut me deep. _Would that lie be the last words she ever said to me?_

Somewhere in the back of mind I knew I should phone Emmett, to tell him that him and Rosalie should come home. I phoned him without thinking about it, still mentally numb from my conversation with Alice.

_Why my Alice? Why was she the one who had to risk her life to save him, while I stayed safely out of the way? _What I wouldn't give for it to be the other way around. For her to be safe. Anything for her to safe.

_God damnit, Edward._

But was this really all Edward's fault? He had asked us to move, yes. If we had stayed in Forks none of this would have happened. They'd have been no separation, and hence no mix-up.

_But, why had Edward asked us to move? Because I had attacked Bella. It's my fault. My fault. Now Edward was on his way to die, and chances are Alice and Bella will die too. My fault. My fault. Edward, Bella and Alice, all dead. My fault. My fault._

I didn't care less when I crumpled onto the chair. I sobbed for the first time in over a century.

_It was all entirely my fault._

"Jasper." I don't know how long she'd been there, but suddenly Esme had her arms round me.

_This won't do. I have to keep it together._

I stood up; effectively realising myself from Esme's motherly hug.

"What's happening now, Jasper?" Carlisle asked. Worry was palpably emitting from both him and Esme, as they studied me with concern.

Alice's words echoed in my head. 'Prepare Carlisle; the odds aren't good.'

_How do I tell them their son is on his way to their death? Especially when it is my fault._

They'd probably wish they'd never let me join their family once they found out. _Actually, Carlisle and Esme were too loving and caring to ever think such a thing. But they should do._

They would lose a son. I would lose my wife. _And it was my fault._

* * *

**Some of the dialogue from the phone call comes from New Moon, which is, of course, property of Stephenie Meyer.**

**What did you think of Jasper's reaction? Reviews are greatly appreciated.**


	6. Carlisle

**Carlisle**

As I watched Jasper collapse, I knew something was wrong. I had never seen Jasper, my soldier son, look so weak, so vulnerable.

_Something was very wrong with my family. Something else has happened. But with Bella dead, and Edward hiding from us in South America, what could possibly have happened to make our family's dismal situation worse?_

"What's happening now, Jasper?" I asked. When he didn't answer immediately, but instead stood there looking unsure of what to say, just like when they had told us Bella was dead, I knew it was something bad indeed.

_What could be worse than the news of Bella's death - news that surely was only going to tear apart my fractured family even more?_

"Bella's alive," Jasper told us. My heart temporarily soared, until I realised that there was more to it than that.

_There has to be something else. If it were good news like that, than why did we find Jasper sobbing to himself?_

"But that's good news, surely?" My wife's question echoed my own confusion.

"No, because Edward thinks she's dead."

"Why does Edward," I knew the answer to my question before I had even finished asking it.

"Rosalie phoned him?" Jasper's face had hardened at the mention of Rosalie's name, which suggested I wasn't the only one who was currrently frustrated at her, and then he had nodded.

"He is coming home then?" Esme asked optimistically. I knew the answer before Jasper said it, but it still pained me.

"No. He's …" Jasper trailed off uncomfortably.

"He's..." I prompted, looking at Jasper expectantly.

_What would Edward do now?_

I looked at my darling wife standing next to me. _What would I do if she were gone?_ I didn't know the answer to my question. It was an unimaginable future, the idea of living without Esme by my side.

"He's going to Italy." He didn't need say to anymore, I knew what he meant. He was going to the Volturi. _But why?_

"Why?" Esme asked. As I looked at her, I knew the answer. I couldn't imagine living without her, and Edward felt the same about Bella.

_He is going there to die._

Throughout my decades there, I had seen the Volturi extract their own branch of punishment on many an immortal. But now in my mind, it was my son I saw ripped apart and burned, and, unlike the others, the imagined Edward in my head was perfectly content as they killed him. The image horrified me to my core.

"He is going there to die," I said out loud. It wasn't a question. I knew it was true.

"Yes," Jasper confirmed. Beside me, Esme gasped.

"No! Vampires can't commit suicide. He can't die!" she sobbed hysterically. I pulled her into my arms while she continued to sob. Hysterical as she was, I couldn't help but agree with her. _He can't die._

A thousand memories spanning the length of a century flashed through my mind. Some of them stood out more than others. The day Edward allowed me to call him 'son' for the first time. The day he returned home after disappearing for four years. The day he brought Bella home for the first time. All happy memories with my son.

_My son._ I had always thought of him as that, from the very day he woke up, even if he hadn't permitted me to call him such at first.

_Had I let him down as a father?_

Not for the first time, I wondered if I should have left him to die in that Chicago hospital in 1918. Left him to die at peace, to be with his parents. Rather than dragging him into my immortal life, only for him to die a violent fiery death in the end of it all anyway.

Perhaps now, at least, he could find his peace in the afterlife. I knew Edward did not believe it possible, but I had to cling to my faith. Cling to the hope that after everything I did to him, he would still be permitted to join his parents. And Bella.

_But Bella's not actually dead._

"Bella's not dead?" I asked my son for confirmation of what he had said earlier, over my wife's shoulder.

"No, I'm not entirely certain what happened, but Alice saw it wrong." He paused before continuing. "Bella and Alice are on a plane to Italy, they hope to get there in time to show him Bella's alive, and stop him."

There it was. The strand of hope I needed to cling to. _There is a chance Edward might survive. _My happiness was short lived, as I realised how high the price of failure would be. _Would we lose all three of them? My son, my daughter and the girl I'll admit I had once had high hopes would join our family at Edward's side._

Worst of all was the realisation that there was nothing I could do.

The game was in play. The players were in motion. The price of losing was death.

And I could do nothing but wait for news of the outcome. Wait to find out who had won and who had lost. Who had survived and who was dead.

Never in my three centuries of existence had I felt so powerless. I was supposed to be the father, the leader, of our family, but everything was out of my control. All I could do was wait.

And so we waited.

At some point, Rosalie and Emmett arrived home, later followed by the Denali clan. We gave explanations and had discussions of possible outcomes. But we all knew we were just filling time. Filling time until the phone call from Alice that would tell us what had happened. Or until enough time had passed without that phone call for us to know it hadn't ended well for anyone.

Unable to do anything else to help, I prayed. I repeated my prayers silently in my head over and over again. It was in God's hands now, all I could do was keep waiting.

I watched Jasper as he struggled to hide his own worry for his wife, watched Rosalie as she tried to hide her guilt, watched Emmett as he grew more and more impatient, watched Esme as she fretted for her children. But that was all I could do –watch. I wanted to say something, do something to help them all. But I couldn't think of the right words, the right actions, to bring them some comfort. I couldn't help them, not when I was barely keeping it together myself.

I felt like a failure. A failure as a father and as a leader. My family needed me to be strong now more then ever, and I couldn't do it. The best I could do for them was to keep it together, to not get lost in my own grief, but I struggled to do even that.

Images raced through my mind continuously as we waited. Edward and Alice ripped apart and burnt. Bella, that sweet, innocent girl, drained of blood. Nothing more in the eyes of the Volturi than a meal.

It was Elezear that had suggested a different possible outcome.

"I don't think Aro would kill Edward or Alice," he had said. We had all turned to look at him sceptically. Aro may have been my friend, but if Edward arrived in Volterra asking for death, I'm sure he'd willingly gave him it. And if Alice got in their way, I'm sure he'd willingly order her destroyed.

"A psychic and a mind-reader, one who can hear minds without the need for touch. I think that would intrigue Aro."

"You think he'd offer them a place in the guard?" I asked. I tried to imagine it. My children in the cloaks of the Volturi guard, eyes red as the fed of humans indiscriminately. Loathsome though the image was, it was better than them dead. _Would I truly rather have them turn their back on everything I believe in than die?_ The answer was yes – anything was better than them dead.

"Bella would probably still be killed though. I don't think Edward would take that to well, unless, her blood does call to him, I'm sure Aro could find a way to trick him into-" Elezear never got to finish his sentence.

"No," I said darkly. _My son would never do that. _Elezear had looked at me like he was scared; I hate to imagine what my face must have looked like. _Had I, for once, looked more like the vampire I was rather than the human I pretended to be?_

Nobody said much after that, shortly afterwards Elezear and the rest of the Denali clan drifted out of the living room, leaving just the remaining members of my family behind.

_No, didn't think like that. They're still alive. They're still a part of your family._

None of us had anything to say. So we sat frozen. Me and Esme on one sofa, Rosalie and Emmett on another, and Jasper alone in a chair. All of us lost in our own thoughts. Even Emmett, who usually can't sit still and silent for longer than a minute, was uncharacteristically quiet. I wanted to say something, to make them all feel better. But I couldn't think of anything to say to break the silence, to comfort my family. There was no point saying, 'I'm sure they'll be fine.' No one would have believed me.

And so we kept waiting. Never has time passed me by so slowly. For an immortal, mere hours should mean nothing. And yet those hours were torturously slow, one painfully after another.

"That's it!" Emmett's outburst broke the silence that had hung over us all for hours.

"I'm not waiting one second longer. We have to do something."

"Like what?" Jasper asked sarcastically.

"I don't know. Just something. Something to help Edward. And Alice. And Bella. I can't wait around for one more second. We need to do something." I understand how Emmett felt. I had felt the desire to 'just do something' to help all night, but I knew there was nothing we could do.

"And what do you suggest exactly?" Jasper snapped sarcastically.

"Don't shout at him, Jasper, at least he's trying to do something. Don't you want to do something to help Alice?" Instantly I knew Rosalie had said the wrong thing. In one fluent movement I stood up from the sofa, ready to intercede should anything happen.

"How dare you? You think I don't wish it were me who was there instead of her? That I wouldn't do anything to know she was safe?"

"Then why aren't we there in Italy? Why did you phone us and ask us to come home?" Rosalie goaded Jasper.

"I'm not waiting around for one more second," Emmett stated again. "Let's go." He and Rosalie started to walk toward the door.

"Emmett. Rosalie. Wait." I called after them. I couldn't let them walk out. If there was a chance they could have done something to help, then it would have been their choice if they went to do it or not. But there was nothing they could do to help. And I couldn't have any more of my children out there. I just couldn't.

"What, Carlisle?" Rosalie said testily.

"There's nothing you can do. You may as well stay," I told her miserably.

"I'm not going to sit around, and do nothing, like you," she snapped at me.

"Actually, Rosalie, I think you've done enough," I snapped back coldly. The words came out of my mouth unbidden, but they were true enough. If she had never phoned Edward, none of this would be happening.

All three of my children looked at me in surprise. I don't usually snap at people. I usually put all my effort into hiding my temper when it flared up, to the point where I think my family have an unrealistic image of me. The image of someone who was always calm and patient, someone who didn't have a temper.

_Well, that's definitely not true. _I had never wanted people to view me like that. And now the image was shattered anyway. I just hadn't been able to keep my temper in check, not today, not when my nerves were already on edge from the seemingly endless waiting.

"What did you say?" Rosalie asked me icily.

"I think Carlisle may be referring to the fact that you phoned Edward, despite both him and Alice telling you not to," Jasper replied sarcastically on my behalf.

"So it's all my fault? Don't you dare blame this all on me! I'm not the one who decided Bella would make a nice meal." Jasper looked at Rosalie like she had slapped him.

_Jasper can't honestly believe this is his fault? _One look at his face told me the answer to that. _Yes, yes he can._

"Jasper. Rosalie." I wanted to regain some control over them, to stop their argument. But how could I shout at them, when I had acted no better myself? Shame for my earlier lapse in control over my temper washed over me.

"Don't you dare lecture me, Carlisle," Rosalie snarled at me.

Jasper started ranting at her before I got a chance to reply. "It's not just my fault, Rosalie. I may have caused the separation, but you phoned Edward. I may have loaded the gun, but you pulled the trigger. All this time, I've been blaming myself, but it's wasn't just me now, was it? If anything happens to Alice…" The last words came out as a menacing hiss.

"Stay the hell away from my wife, Jasper," Emmett growled menacingly.

"If my wife's dead, give me one good reason too."

"Stop it! Jasper! Emmett! Stop it!" I ordered, but neither of them listened to me. I couldn't control them. Just like I had no control over what was happening to my children half a world away, I now couldn't control what was happening right in front of me, as I literally watched on as my family fell to pieces.

_I really am a failure. I'm not a father or a leader, they all deserve better._

"I'll rip you to shreds, is that a good enough reason?" Both men were squaring off to each other now. I darted in-between them, hoping that would be enough to stop them. There was no way I could physically stop both of them.

"Get out of the way, Carlisle," Jasper growled at me.

"No, Jasper, I won't have a fight."

"I doubt there'll be a fight, Carlisle, Jasper's not that stupid," Emmett goaded, behind him Rosalie chuckled.

"I really would get out of the way, Carlisle. I don't want to rip you apart as well, but if you happen to be in my way when I go for Emmett," Jasper told me, with a eerie calmness to his voice. I heard Rosalie hiss at him.

"Stop it!" The scream was desperate and pleading. It caught the attention of all of us. Turning around, we found my wife had stood up. Her usually gentle face had a look of steely determination to it. "Just stop it. Three of my children are already dead. I won't lose anymore. So, you, just stop it!" Her words were rushed, but angry, and there was a slightly hysterical edge to them. She breathed heavily afterwards, and if she could have, she would have been crying.

Both Emmett and Jasper moved out of their offensive stances. I heard them and Rosalie mutter words of apologies to each other, but I wasn't paying much attention, I was too focused on my wife.

As I watched her, I was hit with a crushing realisation. _I had failed her too._ All Esme had ever wanted was a family. And I had given her the closest I could, but now it was crumbling around us, and I was doing nothing to stop it. _I had failed as a father, as a leader and as a husband._

I walked up to her and placed my arms around, as I did so, I wondered if I really should be permitted too.

"Oh, my darling, I'm sorry," I murmured into her forehead, apologising for more then I think she realised.

Her words from earlier resonated through my head, 'three of my children are already dead.' That was it then, she had given up hope, and if she had, then so had I.

_The phone would never ring. Our children weren't coming home. Our family is soon going to be nothing but history._

If Alice never returned, then Jasper would surely drift off alone. Rosalie and Emmett would probably go their own way as well eventually, I just couldn't see Rosalie and I living comfortably together, not with all the unspoken accusations and guilt there was between us.

I remembered back to when Edward had left us the first time. Esme and I had got by, we still had each other, but it hadn't been the same, not without our son. Now we had lost five, no six, children. Bella counted, from the minute she had walked into our house beside Edward, both Esme and me had secretly counted her as our child, or at least our future child.

"I'm sorry," I whispered to her again. _Sorry I failed you and our family. Sorry I couldn't keep them all together for you. Sorry everything's gone wrong._

Wordlessly, Esme removed herself from my embrace, took hold of my hand, and walked me toward the sofa again. We both sat down again and I noticed the other three had done the same. We were all sat exactly as we had been earlier.

And so we started waiting again. Except this time I was no longer waiting for news of my children, I was waiting for everyone to accept the inevitable. I felt empty, like there was a giant void in me, one that could never be filled. It was a quiet agony.

I prayed one last time. This time for the souls of my children, including Bella. At least with her, I knew it was a purposeful exercise. As for the other two, despite the fact that no one of my kind agreed with me, not even Edward and Alice themselves, I hoped they still had a chance at redemption. It was the least they deserved.

_All-powerful and merciful God, I commend to you, my children. In your mercy and love, blot out all the sins they has committed through weakness. In this world they have died: let them live with you forever. I ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen._

It was the last thing I could do for my children, the last thing that it was still in my power to do.

An hour later, Jasper's phone rang. All eyes snapped towards him.

_This is what we had been waiting for. Was I wrong? Had I written my children off too early? Was there still hope?_ For the first time in hours, I felt something other than crippling grief.

"Alice?" Jasper's voice was worshipful, the smile that lit his face told us all we needed to know.

"When will you be back?" There was a pause while Alice answered. "And Bella and Edward too?" He continued his conversation, but I wasn't listening. All the grief and despair was washed away, replaced with relief and joy. I felt light-headed. I turned to Esme who was sat beside me. She looked like she was in shock, though I knew she just overwhelmed by her own happiness.

"Oh, Carlisle, they're OK. They're coming home," she whispered unbelievingly. She hugged me close and kissed me.

"They're coming home," she repeated, this time excitedly. "They're coming home. They're coming home."

I hugged her close and kissed her again.

"They're coming home," I whispered in her ear, unable to keep the amazement out of my voice.

_They're coming home. It's over. They're all safe. All my children – safe. Thank you Lord._

* * *

**This chapter has turned out to be a lot longer, and has a lot more angst and self-doubt, than I had originally planned. I just sat down to write and this is what happened. However I like it still, so it's all good, I guess.**

**What did you think of Carlisle's reaction? Reviews are always appreciated, even if you're telling me I've gone completely OTT with all the angst and self-doubt.**

**Only one chapter left now. It's going to be the airport scene, with a few paragraphs from everyone.**

**A/N: I am not a religious person, so I have no idea what sort of prayers you might say for the dead. I have to admit, I simply googled 'Prayers for the Dead', clicked on the first page in the list, picked the most suitable looking one and changed a few words so that it fit Carlisle's situation. If you think that it isn't a suitable, or if you can think of a more suitable one, please tell me.**


	7. Everyone

**So here it is, the final chapter. It's a short look into everyone's mind during the airport scene.**

* * *

**Alice**

It was over. All over. Bella and Edward were safe. Their future together was restored, of that, I, of all people, could be certain. Bella would be one of us before too long, a true Cullen, an equal at Edward's side for all eternity. My family - the family I had searched for and coveted for thirty years - would finally be complete.

But, best of all, I would see Jasper in an hour. I would run up to him, throw my arms around him, and kiss him, not caring about any on-lookers.

_Actually, instead of the PDA display, perhaps I should simply walk up to him and hug him, affectionately, but not too much._ And I'd be able to in just half an hour.

The plane was descending. We would land in three minutes, and I would see Jasper in fifteen minutes_. Actually there'll be no need for a hug, or a kiss, or anything. I will simply look him in the eyes, and show him I still love him. Show him that, despite the fact that I had to lie to him, despite risking my life for Edward, I still loved him more than anything._

We had landed, and they would be opening the plane doors in thirty seconds. _And I will see Jasper in ten minutes._

I walked alongside Bella and Edward; Edward was holding a nearly collapsed Bella up. She would be able to stay awake until we got into the car, where she would finally succumb to sleep.

_I will see Jasper in eight minutes._

_God, why does passport control take s_o _long?_ We'd be through after another minute, and another minute after that I would see Jasper.

All three of us walked into the arrivals section. I briefly noticed Carlisle and Esme stood in the shadows near the metal detectors. But I didn't pay them much attention.

I could see Jasper. I walked towards him and looked him in the eyes, trying to tell him without words that I still loved him. Looking into his eyes, I saw the same message reflected back at me. One look in his eyes and I knew, despite everything I'd put him through in the last few days, he still loved me, like he always had.

Staring into those golden eyes, I knew everything would be OK. Jasper loved me. Bella and Edward loved each other. _I can always trust my future._

* * *

**Jasper**

I hardly noticed Bella and Edward. I was too entranced with the little pixie at their side. _Alice. Alive and unharmed and here._

She walked up to me, and looked me in the eyes. Her eyes told me all I needed to know. She loved me. She would always love me. It was OK. Everything was going to be OK. She was here.

I have no idea how long we stood there, just staring into each other eyes. It could have been mere minutes, or hours and days. I didn't know, and nor did I care.

Eventually I decided I had to say something. _But what to say?_ Millions of possibility floated through my head, but how could I put everything I'd felt in the last few days into mere words?

Suddenly a memory from fifty years ago filled my mind. The memory of the day that changed my life. I knew exactly what to say.

"You've kept me waiting a long time." Alice smiled at me then, and I knew she understood everything I was trying to say to her. That I loved her and always would. Had done since that day in a Philadelphian diner fifty years ago.

"Sorry, sir," Alice's reply echoed my own words. Just like that day fifty years ago, I took her hand and everything felt right with the world.

* * *

**Esme**

If it wouldn't have earned us unwanted attention, I think I would have been jumping up and down with joy. Bella and Edward stood in front of me. They really were here - alive and together. I still found it hard to believe.

Before I could think better of it, I pulled Bella into a fierce hug, it was slightly awkward though, as Edward still hadn't removed his arm from around her. I didn't care though; in fact it made me ecstatic. _After all they've been through, they have to be back together now, right? _

"Thank you so much," I whispered in Bella's ear. The words weren't enough, but they would have to do. She had been willing to risk her life to bring my son back alive; I could never truly show her the depth of my gratitude.

Letting go of Bella, I turned to my son. I hadn't seen him since last September; a part of me still couldn't really believe he was really here.

I threw my arms around him, as if to confirm that he was real. If it were possible I would have been crying tears of happiness, as it was, all I did was dry sob.

"You will _never_ put me through that again." I surprised even myself with how fiercely the words came out. It was nearly a growl.

_I mean it, Edward. You ever do that again, I will follow you, no matter where you go, literally drag you home, and then never let you out of my sight again for the rest of eternity._

Edward grinned at my thoughts.

"Sorry, Mom," he said repentantly. I instantly melted at the use of the term of endearment. I couldn't stay cross at him, especially not when he called me 'Mom'. He was my son, and he was here, and safe, and that was all that mattered.

"Thank you, Bella. We owe you," I heard Carlisle say to her. _Talk about an understatement._

Bella mumbled something in reply that sounded like 'hardly'. Maybe one day she would understand just how important what she had done was. Not just today, but everything. She had brought my son to life and I could never repay her enough for that.

Looking at Bella, I realised how exhausted she looked.

_Why hadn't she slept on the plane?_ I looked at my son accusingly. _Edward, she needs sleep, why didn't you make her sleep on the plane?_

"She's dead on her feet," I scolded out loud. "Let's get her home."

* * *

**Carlisle**

They were back. All my children were alive and safe. But I couldn't give myself too long to celebrate. I walked with Esme, Bella and Edward. Alice and Jasper were behind us, still absorbed in each other. As I walked I couldn't help but worry what the future held.

_Surely Edward and Bella would get back together, but what then?_ I was certain Edward would stick to his decision to keep her human, but that meant she would die one day, and when she did, would Edward go running back to Volterra?

_I can't allow that to happen. But the only other option is_ … a stern look from Edward told me he didn't appreciate where my thoughts were going.

_If he keeps her human, than they will both die some day._ The thought horrified me. I couldn't lose two of my children, after the event of the last couple of days I knew that was true.

But that was a problem that could wait. For, in the here and now, my family was safe and whole again at last. Perhaps, instead of worrying for the future, I should take a moment to just enjoy the present, no matter how brief the happiness might be.

_It's good to see you again, son._ I had already thought that several times already, but one more time wasn't going to hurt. My son favored me with his trademark smirk. It was good to see him more like his normal self.

* * *

**Emmett**

My joy at seeing all my family together, including Edward, Bella and Alice, was tainted when I saw Edward stiffen the minute he saw Rosalie. Beside me Rosalie tensed up as well.

_She didn't mean any harm, Edward. She just wanted you to come home. We all did._

I heard Esme whisper something to Edward, but the words were just quiet enough to stop me from hearing them. Edward's reply, however, was completely audible.

"She should."

_God, why does it all have to be so difficult? Everyone's back, at last, so why can't everything just be OK for a change? All we want, Rosalie included, was our family back together and back to normal, or as close to normal as a family of vampires can be._

I would have said the last part out loud, but it would only have been for Edward's benefit and I knew he had already heard it.

Listening back in to the conversation between Edward and Esme, I heard Bella mumble words that made no sense.

"Let her make amends, we'll ride with Alice and Jasper," Emse pleaded. I knew Esme wanted our family back together as much I did, perhaps even more. _You've got to love that motherly vampire._

Edward glowered at my wife in a way that made me want to stand between him and her.

_Edward, you just got back, we haven't seen you in months. Can you cut the emo crap for one minute and actually listen?_

"Please, Edward," Bella said. That took me by surprise; it was no secret how Rosalie felt about Bella._ After all Rosalie's put her through, she's still trying to get Edward to make amends. That girl's got pluck. You sure can pick 'um, lil bro._

With a sigh, Edward began towing Bella towards the car. Both Rosalie and me got in the front seats without speaking.

_This should be an interesting car drive._

* * *

**Rosalie**

I let Emmett drive; I needed to use this time to make Edward forgive me. And Bella too. Differences aside, she had risked her life to save my brother and correct my mistake.

_Well, here goes nothing._

"Edward," I began.

"I know." Edward's tone didn't sound forgiving, but at least he hadn't insulted me. _It's a start._

I turned my attention to Bella. She lay with her head on Edward's chest, nearly asleep. Looking at her I tried to see what my brother saw. I guess she was sort of pretty, nothing like me, of course, but she had the whole girl next-door look going for her.

_I guess if that's your type, she's all right. Complete opposite of me, but clearly I wasn't Edward's type._

The bitterness crept into my thoughts before I could stop it. _So much for my attempt to be nicer toward Bella. I'll just have to try again, I guess._

"Bella?" I asked softly, fearful she was asleep. Her eyelids fluttered open.

"Yes, Rosalie?" I didn't miss how hesitantly she had said it. _She's really scared off me._ The thought didn't give me the pleasure it would have done before the events of the last few days.

"I'm so very sorry, Bella. I feel wretched about every part of this, and so grateful that you were brave enough to go save my brother after what I did. Please say you'll forgive you me." _There I've done it, I've apologised to her._

"Of course, Rosalie," she mumbled. "Not fault. I the jump damn. Course for you." I tried not to laugh at the nonsense that came out of her mouth. I think the last words were meant to be 'course I forgive you', or I hoped so.

"It doesn't count unless she's conscious, Rose," Emmett chuckled. Bella mumbled something not understandable in response.

"Let her sleep," Edward insisted.

I watched as she fell asleep. _Sleep, something I haven't been able to do in over seventy years. Will she soon no longer be able to do so too?_

Suddenly I knew what I could do for Bella to make up for everything I'd done. Instead of hating her for being human, I would put all my effort into making sure she stayed that way. I would open her eyes about the damnation she seemed so eager for, and help her to make the right decision, instead of a decision she would regret for all of eternity.

"That would be very helpful, Rosalie," Edward said sincerely. He hated the idea of her being changed as much as I did. I could make it up to both of them at the same time, all I had to do was make one stubborn human see sense.

Watching her sleep, I promised myself, and Edward, that she would do so for the rest of her life.

* * *

**This chapter is based upon the end of Chapter 22 of New Moon, 'Flight', and some of the dialogue comes from there. New Moon, of course, belongs to Stephenie Meyer.**

**Lots of conflicting thoughts about Bella's humanity from some of the Cullens there. I was trying to show what might have affected them to vote the way they did when it comes to the vote, particularly with Carlisle and Rosalie. **

**I'd just like to say a big 'thank you' to everyone who reviewed, favourited or subscribed. An especially big 'thank you' to those who've taken the time to review regularly. You have no idea how happy your reviews make me.**

**I'd love to hear your views on this final chapter, and this story as a whole. Did you like how I characterised each Cullen? Did they react the way you've always imagined they would have?**

**I'm also eager to start on my next fanfic project; I'm just having a bit of a mind block on what to write about. What would you like to read about when it comes to the untold stories behind the story of Bella and the Cullens? Suggestions would be greatly appreciated; I just need an idea to get my writing started again.**


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